Katy Easterday
Encyclopedia
Roy Alexander "Katy" Easterday (June 29, 1894 – May 1976) was an American football
and basketball
player, track and field
athlete, coach, college athletics administrator, and dentist. He played at the halfback
position for the Pittsburgh Panthers football
teams from 1917 to 1918 and was selected as an All-American in 1918
. Easterday served as the head football coach at Simmons College—now Hardin–Simmons University—from 1919 to 1920, at Bethany College
in Bethany, West Virginia
from 1922 to 1923, and at Waynesburg University
from 1925 to 1927, compiling a career college football
record of 33–24–8.
. He was an all-state basketball player and held the state record in the pole vault
. Before enrolling in college, Easterday also played on sandlot and hometown teams from Ambridge, Salem, Beaver Falls and other western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio teams.
In 1913, Easterday enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh
. When he announced that he wanted to play football for "Pop" Warner, his comments initially "invoked some chuckles from officials there." Easterday made the team as a halfback and scatback. He played on Pitt teams that ran up a 33-game winning streak before losing to Syracuse by a score of 24–3 in 1919. As a senior in 1918, Easterday was selected as a first-team All-American by Tom Thorpe, sports editor of The New York Times
, and Robert "Tiny" Maxwell
, sports editor of The Philadelphia Inquirer
. Walter Camp
praised Easterday as “one of the finest forward pass snaggers Camp had ever seen.”
Pitt's undefeated 1917 team was known as "The Fighting Dentists" because on occasion every position was filled by dental students. The dental students on the 1917 team included Easterday, Skip Gougler
, "Tank" McLaren, "Jake" Stahl
. and Jock Sutherland
.
Easterday also ran track at Pitt and played for the university's basketball teams, serving as the team captain in 1917.
college in Abilene, Texas
. In three years at Hardin–Simmons, Easterday coached two conference basketball championships and a conference baseball championship. He also coached three pitchers who went on to play Major League Baseball
: Jesse "T-Bone" Winters, John "Lefty" Middleton
, and Lefty Ward.
He also coached for four years each at Bethany College
in Bethany, West Virginia
. From 1924 to 1928, Easterday was the athletic director at Waynesburg College
. Waynesburg later played in the first televised football game in 1939. He was inducted into Waynesburg’s Yellow-Jacket Sports Hall of Fame in 1971. Easterday coached all sports at Waynesburg, including football, basketball and track in the mid 1920s.
From 1929 to 1933, Easterday coached football and basketball at Kittanning High School
, located 44 miles (71 km) northeast of Pittsburgh. He coached the Kittanning Wildcats to their first undefeated, untied season in which they allowed only 12 points scored against them the entire year.
in the 1930s, and worked for a couple of years with the National Youth Association. From 1937 to 1942, he worked for Allegheny Ludlum Steel
and from 1942 to 1959, Easterday was a safety supervisor at the Pullman-Standard Company
in Butler, Pennsylvania
. He was also one of the organizers of the Butler County Safety Council.
After retiring from Pullman-Standard, Easterday moved to Odessa, Texas
. Easterday had begun his coaching career at Hardin-Simmons College near Odessa and met his wife there. In 1968, he was named "Elk of the Year" by the Elks
lodge at Odessa. Easterday was married to Myrtle Christian, and the couple had a daughter.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player, track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
athlete, coach, college athletics administrator, and dentist. He played at the halfback
Halfback (American football)
A halfback, sometimes referred to as a tailback, is an offensive position in American football, which lines up in the backfield and generally is responsible for carrying the ball on run plays. Historically, from the 1870s through the 1950s, the halfback position was both an offensive and defensive...
position for the Pittsburgh Panthers football
Pittsburgh Panthers football
Pittsburgh Panthers football is the intercollegiate football team of the University of Pittsburgh, often referred to as "Pitt", located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Traditionally the most popular sport at the university, Pitt football has played at the highest level of American college football...
teams from 1917 to 1918 and was selected as an All-American in 1918
1918 College Football All-America Team
The 1918 College Football All-America team consists of American football players selected to the College Football All-America Teams selected by various organizations for the 1918 college football season.-Key:* WC = Walter Camp...
. Easterday served as the head football coach at Simmons College—now Hardin–Simmons University—from 1919 to 1920, at Bethany College
Bethany College (West Virginia)
Bethany College is a private liberal arts college located in Bethany, West Virginia, United States. Founded in 1840, Bethany is the oldest institution of Higher Education in West Virginia.-Location:...
in Bethany, West Virginia
Bethany, West Virginia
Bethany is a town in Brooke County, West Virginia, United States. It is part of the Weirton–Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 985 at the 2000 census. The Town of Bethany is home to Bethany College.-History:...
from 1922 to 1923, and at Waynesburg University
Waynesburg University
Waynesburg University is a private, university located in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, USA. The university offers graduate and undergraduate programs in more than 70 academic concentrations, and enrolls over 2,500 students, including approximately 1,500 undergraduates.Waynesburg University was...
from 1925 to 1927, compiling a career college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
record of 33–24–8.
Early life and playing career
Easterday was born in Lisbon, OhioLisbon, Ohio
Lisbon is a village in Center Township, Columbiana County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,788 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Columbiana County.-History:...
. He was an all-state basketball player and held the state record in the pole vault
Pole vault
Pole vaulting is a track and field event in which a person uses a long, flexible pole as an aid to leap over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the ancient Greeks, as well as the Cretans and Celts...
. Before enrolling in college, Easterday also played on sandlot and hometown teams from Ambridge, Salem, Beaver Falls and other western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio teams.
In 1913, Easterday enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
. When he announced that he wanted to play football for "Pop" Warner, his comments initially "invoked some chuckles from officials there." Easterday made the team as a halfback and scatback. He played on Pitt teams that ran up a 33-game winning streak before losing to Syracuse by a score of 24–3 in 1919. As a senior in 1918, Easterday was selected as a first-team All-American by Tom Thorpe, sports editor of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, and Robert "Tiny" Maxwell
Tiny Maxwell
Robert W. "Tiny" Maxwell was a professional football player and referee. He was also a sports editor with the Philadelphia Public Ledger.-Early life:...
, sports editor of The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded by John R. Walker and John Norvell in June 1829 as The Pennsylvania Inquirer and is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the...
. Walter Camp
Walter Camp
Walter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
praised Easterday as “one of the finest forward pass snaggers Camp had ever seen.”
Pitt's undefeated 1917 team was known as "The Fighting Dentists" because on occasion every position was filled by dental students. The dental students on the 1917 team included Easterday, Skip Gougler
Skip Gougler
Roscoe A. "Skip" Gougler was an American football player and coach, dentist and professor of dentistry. He played at the halfback and quarterback positions for the Pitt Panthers football teams from 1915-1918. He was selected as a second-team All-American in 1918...
, "Tank" McLaren, "Jake" Stahl
E.A. "Jake" Stahl
Edward Adam "Jake" Stahl was an American football player. He played guard and tackle positions for the Pittsburgh Panthers football teams from 1915–1918. He was selected as a second-team All-American in 1918. He also played professional football from 1920–1921.- Biography :Stahl was born in...
. and Jock Sutherland
Jock Sutherland
Dr. John Bain "Jock" Sutherland, D.D.S., was an American football coach. He coached college football at Lafayette College and the University of Pittsburgh and professional football for the Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Steelers...
.
Easterday also ran track at Pitt and played for the university's basketball teams, serving as the team captain in 1917.
Coaching career
Easterday graduated from Pitt in 1919 with a degree in dentistry. He passed his state dentistry examination but opted to pursue a career in coaching. After graduating, Easterday became the athletic director and head coach of all sports at Hardin–Simmons College, a private BaptistBaptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
college in Abilene, Texas
Abilene, Texas
Abilene is a city in Taylor and Jones counties in west central Texas. The population was 117,063 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Abilene Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2006 estimated population of 158,063. It is the county seat of Taylor County...
. In three years at Hardin–Simmons, Easterday coached two conference basketball championships and a conference baseball championship. He also coached three pitchers who went on to play Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
: Jesse "T-Bone" Winters, John "Lefty" Middleton
John Middleton (baseball)
John Wayne Middleton was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played for one season. He pitched for the Cleveland Indians for two games during the 1922 Cleveland Indians season.-External links:...
, and Lefty Ward.
He also coached for four years each at Bethany College
Bethany College (West Virginia)
Bethany College is a private liberal arts college located in Bethany, West Virginia, United States. Founded in 1840, Bethany is the oldest institution of Higher Education in West Virginia.-Location:...
in Bethany, West Virginia
Bethany, West Virginia
Bethany is a town in Brooke County, West Virginia, United States. It is part of the Weirton–Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 985 at the 2000 census. The Town of Bethany is home to Bethany College.-History:...
. From 1924 to 1928, Easterday was the athletic director at Waynesburg College
Waynesburg University
Waynesburg University is a private, university located in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, USA. The university offers graduate and undergraduate programs in more than 70 academic concentrations, and enrolls over 2,500 students, including approximately 1,500 undergraduates.Waynesburg University was...
. Waynesburg later played in the first televised football game in 1939. He was inducted into Waynesburg’s Yellow-Jacket Sports Hall of Fame in 1971. Easterday coached all sports at Waynesburg, including football, basketball and track in the mid 1920s.
From 1929 to 1933, Easterday coached football and basketball at Kittanning High School
Kittanning High School
Kittanning Senior High School is a public high school located in Kittanning, Pennsylvania. The school serves grades 9 through 12 as part of the Armstrong School District .Graduation Rate:2009 - 87%2008 - 89%-Academic achievement:...
, located 44 miles (71 km) northeast of Pittsburgh. He coached the Kittanning Wildcats to their first undefeated, untied season in which they allowed only 12 points scored against them the entire year.
Later life and family
Easterday also practiced as a dentist in Kittanning, PennsylvaniaKittanning, Pennsylvania
Kittanning is a borough and the county seat of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania in the United States. It is situated northeast of Pittsburgh, along the east bank of the Allegheny River. The name means "at the great stream" in the Delaware language...
in the 1930s, and worked for a couple of years with the National Youth Association. From 1937 to 1942, he worked for Allegheny Ludlum Steel
Allegheny Technologies
Allegheny Technologies, Inc. is a specialty metals company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the United States. Allegheny Technologies is one of the largest and most diversified specialty metals producers in the world with revenue of $3.0 billion in 2009. ATI's key markets are...
and from 1942 to 1959, Easterday was a safety supervisor at the Pullman-Standard Company
Pullman Company
The Pullman Palace Car Company, founded by George Pullman, manufactured railroad cars in the mid-to-late 19th century through the early decades of the 20th century, during the boom of railroads in the United States. Pullman developed the sleeping car which carried his name into the 1980s...
in Butler, Pennsylvania
Butler, Pennsylvania
The city of Butler is the county seat of Butler County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, situated north of Pittsburgh. The population was 15,121 at the 2000 census.- History :...
. He was also one of the organizers of the Butler County Safety Council.
After retiring from Pullman-Standard, Easterday moved to Odessa, Texas
Odessa, Texas
Odessa is a city in and the county seat of Ector County, Texas, United States. It is located primarily in Ector County, although a small portion of the city extends into Midland County. Odessa's population was 99,940 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Odessa, Texas Metropolitan...
. Easterday had begun his coaching career at Hardin-Simmons College near Odessa and met his wife there. In 1968, he was named "Elk of the Year" by the Elks
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks
The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is an American fraternal order and social club founded in 1868...
lodge at Odessa. Easterday was married to Myrtle Christian, and the couple had a daughter.